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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 116 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  2. The tickets are free of ________________.
  3. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  4. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  5. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  10. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  11. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  12. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. Did you ________________ the meat?
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  18. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  19. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  24. I can't ________________ this cold.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. charge — electricity
  2. charge — a price
  3. fan — to cool the air
  4. bear — the animal
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. field — for sport
  7. spell — letters
  8. field — farmland
  9. stand — for spectators
  10. charge — in control
  11. spell — magic
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. season — to add flavour
  15. field — a subject
  16. bat — the animal
  17. season — in sport
  18. bear — to put up with
  19. bear — the animal
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. stand — on your feet
  22. spell — a short time
  23. season — of the year
  24. stand — to bear

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com